Exchanging Hearts
by Forgotten Shadow Dweller
Summary: Far away from home and deathly ill, will anyone come to stay with me before the end? Theif Bakura/Akefia x OC. Kind of a sad story.


Yes, I live, but for now to those who read and liked my other story, this will have to do, and I think I did a much better job on this one... even if it is a little depressing. Anyway I left it open ended so if people ask me for more with this story, I can do more. And just as a warning, Bakura is kind ooc in this... But please, enjoy.

Disclaimer: If I owned Yu-Gi-Oh, they would have done more with Bakura, none of this dueling on motorcycle stuff... so obviously, I do not own it. I do own my OC though, I did create her after all.

Exchanging Hearts

* * *

It was dark. For days all I had known was this immense darkness, but I guess that is what happens, when one can not see anything. I lay awake in my room, the dry afternoon air blowing in through my window from the dessert outside.

I hate this. I am not living, back home in London I was fine, but my father, he had to bring me with him this time, had to take his only daughter to this forsaken place in the middle of the dessert. And now here I am, laying on my bed, waiting for this unknown illness to finally claim victory over me. It wont be long now. My fainting spells and fatigue have been getting increasingly worse for a long time. I'm starting to forget how things were before this, my old home, grass, my friends back in London... I seem to have only one friend now. But he is all I could ever ask for. The only thing I would change is where he currently is, so it would be here, with me. Sadly, I can do no such magic.

It is late now, I can tell because I can no longer hear anything from outside, and the bandages around my face were just recently changed. Sometimes I wonder if this land is truly cursed, scorching hot during the day and bitter cold after the sun leaves the sky. I start to shiver, until I feel warm hands moving up and down my arms. They aren't mine.

One of the hands covers my mouth before I can even gasp, let alone scream. A warm body presses up against my back, and a deeply masculine voice whispers in my ear "Now, now, is that any way to treat a friend?"

He let his hand down as I let out the breath that I had been holding, and I relaxed against the man behind me. I know his voice, I know him. "Hello, Akefia." I whispered back

I don't think it would be humanly possible for me to feel any better than I did that moment, and here I was, dying. But he was here with me, even if I could not see him. Then again I never really had, Either I had my head wrapped or he covered his face with a large hood. Today I think it was both, but it didn't really matter now.

We had been sitting close together in a comfortable silence for some time, but I felt an urge to ask. "Akefia, do you remember our first meeting?"

"Why dearest Samantha," He tsked, "I don't think the gods will ever let me forget it..." His usual sarcastic voice trailed off, then suddenly became more serious. "You know I lied to you that day."

"Oh really, care to share more with me?" I asked.

"I said I only let you go because you weren't much to look at..." He paused for a moment, "I still, even when your this ill, find you to be beautiful."

I turned to face him, even if I couldn't see him, it still felt better to do so, completely lost for words, "Why are you telling me this, you normally don't share this much..." I thought he must be the sick one, Aeifia was never like this...

"Because its true... I've only imagined goddesses to have hair made of gold, but I was horribly wrong. Your eyes rival the sapphires set in the pharaoh's throne, and your skin, pure moonlight." All said in his beautiful voice, sending shivers down my spine.

I couldn't take this, I needed to know if this was really him, or if the universe had decided to play one last cruel trick on me. "Take the wrappings off my face.

"Sam, your still..." He tried to plead.

"Just do it, please." I cut him off before he could change my mind. He sighed, but did as I asked. Slowly unwrapping the bandages from my face, his warm, tan hands brushing my cheeks and through hair many times.

I slowly opened my eyes, unsure of what to expect. Surprisingly it was not the deep darkness I had known for the past days. Pail moonlight fluttered in through my open window, illuminating the man in front of me. His Dark skin was a great contrast to my own. He wore a red and sandy colored tunic and hood, with a red veil covering all but his violet eyes. Within an instant I grew even more daring, and reached up to remove the veil. Unlike the last time I had attempted this, his strong arms did not push me away from him, but held me in place. After the veil came the hood, which Akefia had thrown back himself.

I was almost in shock. Under the veil lay a scar, coming down over his right eye almost to his chin, with two smaller ones running across it. What had really shocked me though, was his hair, choppy white strands falling around his tan face. "Your Bakura... the thief I hear people speak of." I said in less than a whisper.

"I see my reputation has even reached you here." He responded to me numbly.

"I think... I've known it for a while, nothing ever made sense to me though." He smiled as I started to run my fingers through his hair, to see if it was as soft as it appeared to be. It was.

Akefia laughed, "You know I'd kill anyone else who would even think about trying that." he joked.

"But what makes me so different?"

Leaning in closer, his face almost touching mine, "Because you mean something to me. My heart seems to have been stolen from right under my nose, and here I find it, in your hands..." He breathed in my ear. "Tsk, tsk, cant be killing you now, can I?"

"No, I suppose not..." Here and now, I never wanted time to move on. Alive, with my love... but I was just so tired...

"Don't worry, I know where yours is too." He told me before sleep caught me.

* * *

She seemed to be at such peace, then again, in a way, I was too. For once in my life I had found something more... Something to live for. Only to lose it to this sick game people call living. She didn't deserve this, my family didn't deserve their death either, but it happened all the same. It would take more than a miracle for her to last through the night.

I held her sleeping body, waiting for something. I don't know what, but that seemed to be what she did sometimes, wait for seemingly nothing. Time was passing too quickly, I had to go. I lay her down and pulled her sheet up to her neck. I brushed a golden stand from her face and slowly leaned down to kiss her temple. I told her good bye before quietly taking her lips to my own, and I could swear I felt her smile.

Before I went out though her window, I took one final look back at her almost still form. I could feel the smile tugging at my mouth and the tears welling up in my eyes as I stepped out in to the night. "Someday..." I told myself "Someday, you will never leave my side."


End file.
